MASSIVE DATA LEAK TRACED TO IP ADDRESS IN OMAN

No arrests have been made, says inspector-general of police

INVESTIGATORS probing into the massive online breach of information of more than 46 million mobile phone subscribers in Malaysia have traced the leak to an Internet Protocol (IP) address in the Arabian peninsula.

Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Mohamad Fuzi Harun said the team, comprising police and Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) officers, traced the data leak to an IP address in Oman.

He said it was a complicated case but gave his assurance that investigations were ongoing.

Asked if the police had made any arrest, Fuzi said there was none so far.

“Not yet... it is not easy as it is a complicated case. However, investigations are ongoing,” he told the New Straits Times.

When asked if telecommunications companies had been excluded from the list of suspects, Fuzi said it was too early to conclude on the matter.

On Thursday, Fuzi had revealed the data breach could have taken place during a data transaction, when several crooked employees of a company were able to take advantage of the situation.

He had said internal security controls had been taken by the responsible parties.

Fuzi had said investigators had some leads pertaining to the case, and those involved had been identified.

The source of the breach, however, was still being investigated.

The data breach was first reported last month by public online forum Lowyat.net, which said it had received information that someone was trying to sell a huge database of personal information.

The data comprised mobile phone numbers, MyKad numbers, home addresses and SIM card data of 46.2 million customers of several mobile phone operators.

The database was also believed to contain private information of more than 80,000 people, leaked from records of the Malaysian Medical Council, the Malaysian Medical Association, and the Malaysian Dental Association.